Post here all non technical related topics about Formula One. This includes race results, discussions, testing analysis etc. TV coverage and other personal questions should be in Off topic chat.
Is there anywhere in the rules that limits the size of the fuel tank? If not, McLaren could run the 2010 chassis now (as a kind of B-Spec MP4-24) and gain valuable data for the design of next years car.
First off, any team is contractually obligated to try their best. Not only for the fans, but sponsors expect reasonable effort for their money.
But let's examine where McLaren are, and their future potential for improvement. Currently, in the manufacturer's title chase, they lie 6th, at 13 points. Williams is ahead of them at 15.5 points, with Ferrari sitting 4 with 26 points. Realistically, 5th may be attainable, but catching and passing Ferrari is expecting too much. So for 2009, the best they can hope for is 5th, and for a team with such high expectations, it's a major let-down.
Fundamentally, 2009 is a very bad year. How does that impact on present upgrades? Since the 2010 cars will have little aero changes, any upgrades in this area right now are also beneficial for 2010. So expect the constant stream of aero upgrades to continue. But mechanically, there's a lot to prepare for. KERS will no longer exist, and that will free up a lot of room for internal changes. The requirement to run the entire race on one fuel load is a major change, and is worth exploring.
Last year McLaren were engaged with Ferrari in a battle, that went down to the last race. Both McLaren and Ferrari dedicated a lot of resources in this battle, and it did have a negative effect on the development of their 2009 cars. This year, it won't happen.
And of course, McLaren have to identify the apparent shortcomings of the 2009 car and do whatever it takes to avoid such a blunder again. It's a problem they are currently working on, and most likely have dedicated enough resources to solve this major roadblock.
In summation, aero upgrades will continue, but mechanical changes will be done only in the expectation they will benefit the coming 2010 car.
Racing should be decided on the track, not the court room.
Why get shot of the current car for next year, they are 6th in the Constructers Champoinship, so they will for the most part be trying to get 5th from Williams as the first 5 garrages will have 3 garrage bays next year (Currently its Top 3 Last year w/4, then 3 for the rest) with the rest having just 2 to accomadate the 3 new teams at most GPs next year (Monaco excluded) so this is what McLaren will go for as they want to have the most space avalable to broadcast their sponsors message in the garrage.
Also theres gonna be little changed aero wise, but the car towards the end of the season can be used for a test bed for the MP/4-25, but for the next 6 GP, id expect them to try and push Hekki and Hamilton as far up the grid as they can to try and get the 5th posistion, and posibly the 4th as Ferrari have abandoned the F60 already.
Id expect to see a return to form next year for last years top 3 constructors, with RBR and Brawn in the mix as well, but for now they must pust and get as high as they can. I can see McLaren doing a Renault from last year, poor first half, better and improving second half, with a win or two at the end of the year.
I would immediately stop development on the 2009 car, and start building to the 2010 Published Technical Regulations. I think there is a good chance that the published regs are gonna stay, and McLaren could quick step into the development, and get their budget way down.
Until the published regs are changed, 2010 is still gonna be 2 tier with cap regs in place. And I think any changes that are attempted will lead to the new teams + WIlliams + FIF1 filing suit for the change.
THen the FIA will tell the FOTA "Sorry, but we cannot deliver, and now you are signed up till 2013. Deal with it.)
The FOZ wrote:I believe all wind tunnels are to be 60% scale...so I would expect that the relationship between the various instruments and airspeeds relative to the scale of the model need to jive with what the full sized version would experience on track.
n smikle wrote:So I heard too.
What is it that needs calibrating the windtunnel? The Fan/air it self or the measuring instruments?
Yes, i was thinking the same thing, the scale model can in some ways underestimate the aerodynamic performance of a wing for example. Wings lift coefficients are greatly affected by Reynold's number. It increase with increase in Re. The Re increases with size of the subject. Having a vehicle at 60%, well...may reduce the Reynold's number accordingly.
So you see where this is headed; the car may have thought to be designed to the maximum potential when in reality it was designed conservatively, all because of the scale. It sounds too fundamental for this to be the problem with calibrating the tunnel, but it could be so simple that it is over looked.
notice the big difference in max Cl with the change in Re for this profile. Can't blame them for using a scaled model though, the wind tunnel size increases drastically for an increase in the desired wind speed.
ringo wrote: Can't blame them for using a scaled model though, the wind tunnel size increases drastically for an increase in the desired wind speed.
Is it not a regulation that was imposed by the FIA?
Anyway I think that Macca need to find out what is wrong with their current instrumentation systems before they can develop their 2010 car. Notice that they are not planning on introducing major upgrades in the upcoming GP. I think they are focusing their attention on solving these issues before they can start introducing aero updates to the car.
i thought whitmarsh said they were gonna stop just mindlessly throwing bits at the car and hoping it'll work, that's the reason they're not bringing the big upgrade yet
